Giddily married to her best friend. Texas native. Novelist and writer. Working hard to get my children's books published. I'm delightfully whimsical, artsy and creative. And goofy. Really goofy. I take frequent dance breaks wherever I am, whenever I can. My days are spent chasing my two Chihuahua puppies, Bitty and Bear. My motto: Be a happy duckie! My goal: to bring joy and whimsy to the world through my stories.

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For the past month or so, I go to the Barnes and Nobles in my neighborhood every morning during the week and write until lunch. I work on the cookbook, on whatever articles I’m doing for the week, on my latest children’s book and on the new Christmas romance I’m about to query publishers on.

Spending the morning writing surrounded by books with the gentle whir of expresso machines and chatter is like macaroni and cheese for the soul. It’s comfortable, soothing and I never get tired of it.

The other day, I was wondering up and down the aisles when this book beckoned to me. Expecting another “woe is me” tale, I picked it up and began to skim through it. Soon, my skepticism changed from shock to sympathy to laughter.

Hungry, by Crystal Rynn, is the true-life tale of a supermodel who tired of 8 hour workouts and diet pills and celery and bucked the system by modeling at her natural size, a 12 (she’s 5’9). What impressed me than rather than blame the fashion industry, she analyzed the ‘obesity epidemic’ and society’s obsession with women and weight, no matter which range they fall in. The book was heartbreakingly honest and terrifying, but hopeful at the same time.

What struck me the most was Rynn’s message of being true to oneself and success following the confidence of knowing you’re doing what’s good for you, regardless of what society or ones industry might say. After spending years watching my mother diet and be ashamed of her weight and my sister following the same path, and having my own personal struggles with body image and weight; I admire Rynn’s guts to take a stand in an industry that finds a size six fat.

After a pivotal moment of breaking down, Rynn’s first ‘recovery’ meal is a salmon salad at a cafe next to a modeling agency. Rather than binge, she enjoys the rich flavors and succulent greens, much like this salad.

I know she inspired me to make one next weekend. How about you?

Stay tuned, Invisible Friends! A new Friday Five mañana!

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The obsession with skinny drives me crazy! Especially now that I have a daughter who one day lamented, “Oh, I’m getting fat!” because she couldn’t button an old pair of jeans. Instead of realizing that she was growing, her first thought was she was getting fat, even at the age of 10! Thank you for sharing this book, I’m going to look for it next time I am in the book store!

First I want to say that I love your daily morning/writing routine. Such a comfort to have that sort of routine! It’s funny but this is like the third or so blog this morning talking about body image and weight, it must be a collective concern in the air!

Crystal Renn is a very inspirational person and I really need to read the book, but it saddened me that she did eventually lose a lot of weight since the book and I think she’s back down to less than a size six. That salad is great, though. I must try it again.

I’m one who has given over many times to relentless fat-jokes, simply as retribution for all the skinny-jokes I had to endure during my adolescence, which happened to coincide with Mo’nique’s book “Skinny Bitches are Evil.” I mean, I totally hear what you’re saying about the over-diagnosis of obesity, but I also happen to think that any woman who is 500 pounds and gnawing on a ham bone has no right to call me skinny. Yes, this has happened to me. More than once. So I called her fat, and then ran. She couldn’t chase me. Just saying.